This request ultimately inspired us to create this blog post and identify some of the best events to attend in 2025 while playing off-the-beaten path golf courses and exploring unique destinations with your partner, friends or family.
1. Venice Carnival, Italy
Experience Venice differently and attend the city’s most exciting event of the year from February 22 to March 4, 2025. The “Floating City” is an absolute gem to visit during the mask festival as the main squares transform into a magical lavish masquerade with locals and tourists alike wearing gorgeous masks and magnificent period costumes. Even better for us…Venice is home to a great golf course, Circolo Golf Venezia, located on the southern tip of the Lido di Venezia, a narrow sandbar separating the main island with the Adriatic Sea.
While 2025 will be the year of the Jubilee, the Holy Year, in Italy with expected visitors to rise up to 35 millions in Rome alone, we can still craft remote golf adventures in the northern and central countryside areas of Italy. Venice could be the starting point of a fantastic golf trip combining the northern lakes (Lake Garda and Lake Como) with a stop in Milan to admire Leonardo Da Vinci’s masterpiece, the Last Supper, ending the road-trip in the foodie region of Emilia Romagna or even the Piedmont region, well worth a visit to try-out some of the best Barolo and Barbaresco wines.
If you enjoy classical music and find yourself in northern Italy…we also highly recommend to attend a concert in the fabulous Arena di Verona during the Opera Festival.
2. Tulip Festival Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Swing into spring and plan a memorable trip to the Netherlands during the breathtaking tulip season. This year, the Tulip Festival will be held from March 20 to May 11, 2025, making it the perfect opportunity to play some of the best links courses in the Netherlands: Kennemer Golf & Country Club, Noordwijkes Golf Club and Royal Hague Golf & Country Club.
During the festival, the remarkable Keukenhof Gardens put on the best flower show in the world along with the world-famous Flower Parade scheduled on April 11, 2025. Guided tours and day trips from Amsterdam are offered.
3. Monaco Grand Prix and the 24-Hours of Le Mans, France
How exciting! Get the thrill of a lifetime and attend a Formula One race in France while playing great golf courses. Who knew this could be possible, right? The good news about attending either one of these races, is that they are ideally located nearby top courses in France. Grand Prix de Monaco will take place from May 3-May 4, 2025; the perfect opportunity to play a round at Monaco Golf Club, Old Cannes Mandelieu, Royal Mougins, Château de Taulane and/or Terre Blanche, all located within 1 to 1,5 hour drive from each other. Now for The “24-heures du Mans” scheduled from June 11-June 15, 2025, you could easily take a road-trip to the Loire Valley and play outstanding heathland courses. Play the courses at Les Bordes Golf Club or alternatively, the hidden gem course of Les Aisses Golf Club while visiting the châteaux and some of the largest gothic cathedrals in Europe, aka Chartres Cathedral. This might just be what you need.
If you are a wine amateur, we highly suggest visiting Bordeaux during the annual Wine Festival (June 19-22, 2025) and play Cabot Bordeaux, Grand St-Emilionnais, Moliets, Seignosse, Hossegor, and Chiberta and Biarritz. Alternatively, you could also play the courses around Paris (St Cloud GC is only opened to outside visitors during the summer months) and attend the Tour de France finale on the Champs Elysées on July 27, 2025.
4. Doolin Folk Festival, Ireland
Play the great Irish Links courses along the Wild Atlantic Way and stop in the charming coastal town of Doolin to attend the Doolin Folk Festival scheduled from June 13 to June 15, 2025. This music festival is among our top choices to combine great golf with local festivities and meet fun and welcoming Irish people. Nearby attractions include the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren National Park, the Aran Islands, the Doolin Caves and the Doonagore Castle Tower. Now if you are a passionate golfer, you know there are outstanding courses in this area…Ballybunion, Lahinch, Doonbeg, Tralee, Dooks, Waterville, Old Head…the list goes on and on.
5. Wimbledon, England
The name alone evokes images of sun-drenched courts, perfectly manicured lawns, and the thrilling roar of the crowd. But it’s more than just a tennis tournament; it’s a quintessential British summer experience that will stay with you forever. The thrill of a close match, the roar of the crowd, the unique charm of the tournament – it’s something truly special. This year, all eyes will be focusing on the best tennis players in the world competing from June 30 to July 13, 2025 at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, located South West of the city.
Wimbledon is an ideal sporting event to combine a golf trip with…in fact, the Surrey area is among the best destinations to play heathland courses and a dream come true for passionate golfers. Play some of the World’s Top 100 golf courses and experience Sunningdale Golf Club, Swinley Forest Golf Club, Walton Heath Golf Club, St George’s Hill Golf Club in full bloom on your trip. This is a great opportunity for an epic golf adventure; one to experience at least once in your lifetime. Exquisite golf awaits you here just outside of London.
6. The Running of the Bulls and the Tomato Festival, Spain
Walk in the footsteps of the legendary Ernest Hemingway and attend the Running of the Bulls in Pampelona from July 6 to July 14, 2025. Part of the Fermin Festival, this bucket-list fiesta is a week long celebration with music, food and sangria flooding the streets.
If this event is on your wish list and you are a passionate golfer, you are in for a special treat here as the Spanish Basque Country is the homeland of Seve Ballesteros, José-Maria Olazábal, Sergio Garcia and lately, Jon Rahm. Among the golf courses to play in this part of Spain, we suggest a round at Golf Club de Ulzama, Real Sociedade de Golf de Neguri and Real Pedrenã.
Another event you may want to consider during your golf trip is La Tomatina in Buñol near Valencia, taking place Wednesday August 27, 2025. This one-of-a-kind festival might be the only time (forever) you could throw a tomato at someone and get away with it and even more unusual, receive a smile in exchange. Apart from the festival, the city of Valencia is wonderful to explore all around, and lucky us, It is home to the only true links course in Spain, El Saler GC, the finest example of a Javier Arana design (the legendary Spanish architect), currently ranked 3rd best venue in the country.
7. Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland
Play golf in the Swiss Alps and listen to great tunes on the shores of Lake Geneva from July 4 to July 19, 2025. Each summer for the past 50+ years, the city of Montreux transforms into the international music capital of the world for 2 consecutive weeks, hosting a variety of international artists. Some iconic artists have performed here at the Montreux Jazz Festival over the years…Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Prince and Bob Dylan to name a few. On the agenda, concerts, smaller stages for local artists, water-based activities, cruises, outdoor markets…and much more. The festival is ideally located near the best courses in the country…Domaine Impérial, Lausanne, Montreux and Crans-Montana, host venue of the DP Omega European Masters are all accessible to international players to some extend.
8. Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, Scotland
2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the largest event in Scotland, the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, a festival dedicated to military bands and cultural performers around the globe. This year, the Military Tattoo will be held from August 1-23rd at the Edinburgh Castle esplanade. If you are a golfer planning a trip to Scotland this summer, this is YOUR chance to rally your friends and family to join you on an epic golf trip. The event can easily be combined with a few golfing days in the East Lothian region, the Ayrshire coast, the Home of Golf and-or the Scottish Highlands, either at the beginning or at the end of your trip. Taking chances…odds are you are in for the trip of a lifetime here.
9. Bruges Beer Festival, Belgium
Aside from the world-famous Oktoberfest in Munich Germany (see our intro), there is a smaller, less heralded, beer festival growing in popularity in Europe…the Bruges Beer Festival held September 14-15, 2025. This fun and entertaining event gathers 60 local brewers producing a total of 400+ different beers. Taste the variety of Belgian ales (Blonde, Red, Amber and Brown), the fruity lambics beers, the Witte beers and the reknown Trappist/Abbaye beers while exploring the beautiful medieval UNESCO world heritage city of Bruges. Now, Belgium might not be on your radar as a golfing destination, yet, It is home to several links and heathland courses and believe it or not, Bruges is an excellent base for a golf trip there. Just 30 minutes from the city center lies 2 links courses you could easily get on, Royal Ostend and Royal Zoute, as well as several examples of the great Tom SImpson’s work.
10. Mozart Concert at the Musikverein Vienna, Austria
Home of the Vienna Philharmonics and the official main stage of the Vienna Mozart Orchestra, the Golden Hall inside the Musikverein is one of the best classical music venues in the world and your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend a Mozart concert with talented musicians dressed in historic costumes and wigs. When in Vienna…this concert is the highlight of any trip here, for golfers and non-golfers alike. The good news for us is that Vienna boasts the 3 top golf courses in the country. The 36-hole parkland layout Cologny Club Gutenhof is situated a mere 20 minutes from the city center, the Fontana Golf & Country Club is just 40 minutes away and the championship mountain course of Adamstal is one hour away. If Vienna is on your wish list and you wonder whether you should bring your clubs, here is the sign you have been waiting for…Tada!!!! 😃
While some of the events listed here are fairly easy to get in, others can be a challenge, therefore, we highly recommend to plan your trip as early as possible to secure your spot. Whether you need a basic entrance ticket, a package or a special reservation to access some of the festivals, the early-booking rule applies as these events will most likely be full in time. Europe has seen an unprecedented influx of international visitors the past 3 years (post-covid) and availability has become the number one issue for most travelers. If you are looking for a memorable golf trip and would like to attend any one of these legendary European events or have another dream trip in mind, please make sure to contact us as soon as possible so we can plan a great trip, combining great golf with cultural traditions.
